I was away in southern France for five weeks, until last week. Did some MV trapping there, and discovered that June had been as bad there as it had been here.
My garden catches before I went away were frighteningly low – by far the worst I have had since moving to Suffolk. Fortunately, this week had made up for the bad start and allayed (temporarily) my concerns for the state of the Suffolk countryside. Nothing astonishingly rare in the garden (yet), but a welcome return of species I haven’t recorded here for several years – eg maple prominent, scarce silver lines, ghost, double lobed, clouded brindle, water ermine. My usual ‘speciality’ species are present and in fair numbers – muslin footman, beautiful hook tip, cream-bordered green pea, least carpet, orange-moth. New species have included silky wainscot, bordered sallow and mugwort plume. Migrants so far minimal, and total numbers (as opposed to numbers of species) are still relatively low, but at least there are moths to look at when I check the garden trap!
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I spent the first week of July in the Italian Dolomites for butterflies and some moths. Season running about 3 weeks behind there due to the weather in spring with not the diversity of species of Fritillaries, Blues and Browns I was expecting. Moths seen there more typical of late spring/early summer. Most out of season moth was a Water carpet – don’t think I’ll ever see one of those in July again! So with what you say about France it does look like in large parts of Europe the Lepidoptera has had a bad time. Maybe explains why there are so few migrants around.
Neil
I’m sure the season in southern Europe was late – I was getting things like the Argentine (Spatalia argentina) in early July in the same place that I saw it in May last year. I was staying in the Cevennes at the time. Local people said the weather had been cold and windy for weeks. Certainly, when we were there the nights were cool (just like at home). Things only improved when we moved to the Dordogne, where the nights were much milder. Oak hawk was in sufficient numbers to be a pest at light.
Very few clouded yellows about, and only one or two spent painted ladies. So I’m not at all surprised not to be catching any vestals etc now.
Thanks for commenting. Good to share thoughts and observations as well as sightings!